The Indiana Pacers 'punched the Cavaliers in the mouth' in Game 6. Can they do it again in Game 7?

Indiana Pacers guard Victor Oladipo (4) slams down two points over Cleveland Cavaliers guard Jordan Clarkson (8) during the first half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018.(Photo: Matt Kryger/IndyStar)

INDIANAPOLIS — As the best player goes, so will the series. For the first time since Game 1, LeBron James had to take a back seat and bow to Victor Oladipo.

That’s because the Pacers found the edge they’d been lacking at both ends Friday vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers, dominating at Bankers Life Fieldhouse 121-87 led by Oladipo (28 points, 13 rebounds, 10 assists). The 34-point margin was the largest in Pacers playoff history.

"Just went out there and played. Did everything with confidence. Didn't overthink it," Oladipo said. "Just play, read, react. Everything didn't have to be a pick-and-roll."

James, who scored 44 points that included the winning shot at the buzzer in Game 5, was relatively silent. James (22 points, seven rebounds) led Cleveland but it never could get back on top after 30-29 with 10:35 left in the second quarter. It wasn’t until the fourth quarter that another teammate, Jeff Green (13 points) reached double figures in scoring.

The metaphors about a playoff series being a fight or a battle came to fruition and Sunday’s Game 7 will inevitably prove to be a knockout for the heavily favored Cavs, who have been to three consecutive NBA Finals, or the No. 5 seed that already has proved its 48-win regular season wasn’t a fluke.

James took an incidental elbow to the left brow from Thaddeus Young (10 points) that put him down late in the second quarter. He had to get bandaged. Kevin Love (seven points, seven rebounds) caught an accidental elbow to the face from Myles Turner (12 points, four rebounds) and asked to be taken out early in the third quarter. He returned but was quickly removed as the deficit ballooned to 36.

Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) reacts to fouling Indiana Pacers guard Lance Stephenson (1) during the second half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) drives by Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) during the second half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers forward Bojan Bogdanovic (44) shoots a three-pointer over Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyle Korver (26) during the second half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers guard Lance Stephenson (1) yells a Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) as he defends him during the second half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers guard Victor Oladipo (4) goes up for a dunk on Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) during the second half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) is fouled by Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) is during the second half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers forward Bojan Bogdanovic (44) goes up for a dunk over Cleveland Cavaliers center Tristan Thompson (13) during the second half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers forward Bojan Bogdanovic (44) goes up for a dunk over Cleveland Cavaliers center Tristan Thompson (13) during the second half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers guard Lance Stephenson (1) argues a foul call he got on Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) during the first half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers center Domantas Sabonis (11) is fouled by Cleveland Cavaliers guard Rodney Hood (1) during the first half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers guard Victor Oladipo (4) slams down two points over Cleveland Cavaliers guard Jordan Clarkson (8) during the first half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers guard Darren Collison (2) looks for a way to steal the ball from Cleveland Cavaliers guard Jose Calderon (81) during the first half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers guard Lance Stephenson (1) is fouled by Cleveland Cavaliers forward Jeff Green (32) during the first half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) is fouled by Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) during the first half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Indiana Pacers guard Darren Collison (2) lays the ball up over Cleveland Cavaliers center Kevin Love (0) during the first half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018. Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Apr 27, 2018; Indianapolis, IN, USA; A general view of the "together" Indiana Pacers shirts on the chairs before game six against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the 2018 NBA Playoffs at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports Trevor Ruszkowski, Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Apr 27, 2018; Indianapolis, IN, USA; A general view of the "together" Indiana Pacers shirts on the chairs before game six against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the 2018 NBA Playoffs at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports Trevor Ruszkowski, Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Apr 27, 2018; Indianapolis, IN, USA; A general view of the NBA logo and the playoffs scorer table before game six between the Indiana Pacers and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the 2018 NBA Playoffs at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports Trevor Ruszkowski, Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Oladipo eclipsed his 32-point performance in the opener the Pacers won by 18 as he shot 11-for-19, including 6 of 8 3-pointers. Darren Collison (15 points, five assists) knocked down 6 of 9 shots, including 3 of 4 3-pointers. Oladipo's triple-double was the Pacers' third in their NBA history, joining Mark Jackson and Paul George.

"The difference was our ball movement, body movement," Collison said. "I saw three, four Vics (on the floor). He was everywhere tonight. He played an amazing game. He's our leader. He's our best player. We kind of follow his lead."

Domantas Sabonis (14 points, five rebounds) had his third consecutive strong outing for Indiana. Lance Stephenson (12 points, five assists) and Bojan Bogdanovic (10 points) also contributed to the result.

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The Cleveland Cavaliers lost to the Indiana Pacers, 121-87, in Game 6.
Matt Kryger/IndyStar

In its three losses, Indiana fell by a total of 10 points. Its three wins are by 54.

"I thought we did a good job tonight of establishing the pace as well as the tempo," coach Nate McMillan said. "Defensively we were much more aggressive, pressuring the ball and keeping the ball in front of us and not allowing them to get to the basket as they did in Game 5. We were better connected on both ends of the floor."

Pacers pressure the ball

The ball pressure was at its best since Game 1. The Pacers pressured Jose Calderon (zero points) up high and extended that to the wings against James with Bogdanovic and Young. It led to a 15-point outburst by Oladipo as he had four steals in the first quarter alone. They took a 57-47 lead into halftime and had 22 points off Cleveland's turnovers entering the fourth. James was kept out of the lane where he lived in Game 5. Instead, he was settling for jumpers from the left side of the floor which is where he's less of a threat to drive and he didn't play in the fourth. James shot just 7-for-16 with four turnovers. The usual starting point guard George Hill (back spams) didn't play for the third game in a row.

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The Indiana Pacers and Cleveland Cavaliers will play Game 7 on Sunday.
Matt Kryger/IndyStar

A more aggressive Oladipo

Oladipo stayed off ball but was far more aggressive in looking for his shot when he came off the baseline screens. He looked for his shot immediately and even banked in a 3 from 28 feet to beat the shot clock.

The most telling sign of his new disposition was when he was doubled on the ball by Love. Instead of giving up the ball Oladipo kept his dribble alive and attacked the slower defender's feet. That allowed Oladipo to turn the corner, get into the paint and force a rotation by the frontline. A simple bounce pass to Turner resulted in a dunk and a double-digit lead.

Oladipo didn't hesitate when he had space and was defended by J.R. Smith (nine points), who has been overwhelmed with praise for his defense in the series. He burned him off the dribble and James' rotation at the rim was late as a thunderous dunk rattled the rim for an 84-66 lead. On the very next possession, Tristan Thompson (three points) switched onto Oladipo. A late double-team came from Jordan Clarkson (five points) but it was to no avail. Oladipo already was attacking the slower big man's feet and drove him back as he pulled up from behind the arc for another 3-pointer. When the Cavs show this coverage, they're at the disadvantage. It only becomes an advantage when Oladipo hesitates and gives up his dribble and the ball like he'd done Games 2-5.

Collison's best game

For the first time all series, Collison began using his speed on Calderon. He missed his first shot, a layup, after pressing the issue and turning the corner on Calderon off the dribble. Maybe he expected a contest from the help defender but it never came. Collison lofted it too high and missed what should've been an easy deuce. That set the tone, however, for how he'd play as he kept the older, slower Calderon on his heels. Collison's first 3-pointer came when he forced a switch as Calderon got stuck on Young in the post. James, knowing it was a sure two points, tried to switch back with his point guard. Calderon was too late. Young passed quickly to Collison as he spotted up for the 3 to give the Pacers 55-47 advantage with 62 seconds left before halftime. It's another mismatch that the Pacers finally exploited fully in their second blowout win of the series. Their starting backcourt outscored Cleveland's 43-6.

Indiana Pacers guard Darren Collison (2) lays the ball up over Cleveland Cavaliers center Kevin Love (0) during the first half of Game 6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, April 27, 2018.(Photo: Matt Kryger/IndyStar)